


but some of us are looking at the stars

by Lecrit



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: ALL THE FLUFF, Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Everyone is adorable, Fluff, M/M, Max Is Adorable, Rafael is adorable, SO MUCH FLUFF, Single Parents, So does my heart, Stargazing, my teeth hurt, this is pure and unabashed fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-15
Updated: 2017-06-15
Packaged: 2018-11-14 13:38:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11209194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lecrit/pseuds/Lecrit
Summary: There aren’t many things that Alec loves as much as he loves the stars.Most nights, he just likes to sit on his balcony and watch the eerie darkness drape over the sky and the silver glow of the moon, surrounded by the stars shaping constellations he knows by heart.This is a special night for him and his son. The only night in the year Alec lets Max stay up after midnight, so they can watch Perseids meteor shower together on the rooftop of their building.Alec doesn't expect to find out they weren't the only ones to get the idea.





	but some of us are looking at the stars

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PatronusMalec](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PatronusMalec/gifts).



> Hello cupcakes!
> 
> This is for my babe [Su](https://twitter.com/PatronusMalec) because she needed a reason to smile today.  
> So I wrote disgusting fluff because why the fuck not.  
> Su, I hate (love) you. Please never stop smiling.
> 
> Huge thank you to my boo [Jackie](https://twitter.com/Author_Jackie) for helping me plot this and beta'ing it. ([Maleciseverything](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Maleciseverything/pseuds/Maleciseverything), check out her stuff!)  
> Not thank you for not stopping me from making this a monster when it was supposed to be a 1-hour OS. I love you anyway.
> 
> Happy reading!
> 
> Ps: #lecrit to live-tweet, as usual.
> 
> Russian readers can fin a translated version [here.](https://ficbook.net/readfic/6209952)  
> Italian readers can fin a translated version [here.](https://www.wattpad.com/story/155955789-but-some-of-us-are-looking-at-the-stars-malec)

There aren’t many things that Alec loves as much as he loves the stars.

Most nights, he just likes to sit on his balcony and watch the eerie darkness drape over the sky and the silver glow of the moon, surrounded by the stars shaping constellations he knows by heart.

When he was younger, he used to sit on the roof of the house with Jace and Isabelle late at night - when their parents were asleep and couldn’t yell at them about how dangerous it was - and stare at them until their eyes were too tired to go on. Alec was always the last one on the roof, too mesmerized by the ethereal beauty of the immensity watching over them to feel drained, was it body or mind.

“Dad! We’re going to miss it!”

Alec chuckles under his breath, unable to help the grin that spreads on his mouth, curving at the corner.

He is grateful that Max is as passionate about it as he is. He started telling him about the stars when he was just a baby and Alec had just adopted him. Despite Jace’s teasing warnings (“You’re gonna make him an astronomy nerd like you, we have enough of one in the family”), Max just learned to love the stars the same way Alec did: by staring at the sky once the night has fallen and letting himself be overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of it.

This is a special night for the both of them. The only night in the year Alec lets him stay up after midnight, so they can watch Perseids meteor shower together.

It is way past his usual bedtime but Max isn’t showing the slightest hint of tiredness, bouncing excitedly on his feet in the hallway, waiting for Alec to finish packing snacks and the new telescope he bought for the occasion, his old and beloved one having passed the point of being obsolete.

“Dad,” Max calls again, dragging the vowel in a impatient and dramatic whine.

“Yeah, yeah,” he replies, flinging the bag over his shoulder and grabbing his keys on the kitchen counter. “We’re not going to miss it, Monkey. It doesn’t properly start for another hour.”

“But you’re so slow,” Max complains.

Alec rolls his eyes, amused more than anything. He needs to have a talk with Jace about being a tad less dramatic in front of Max when he babysits for him.

He barely has the time to step into the hallway when Max is shoving the door open, or trying to, but the door is heavy and he has to lean his entire weight against it to get it to move quickly enough for his liking, grunting with the effort.

Alec snorts and walks closer to help him, earning a triumphant glance from his son when he thinks he suddenly gained a supernatural strength.

As soon as Alec has the door safely locked behind them, Max is all but running up the stairs, urging him to move quicker and Alec follows, his grin broadening every time Max’s small but enthusiastic voice tells him how excited he is until he can feel his eyes crinkle at the corner.

Alec would never admit to his siblings that he chose to live in Brooklyn because the sky is clearer here than in Manhattan and because this particular building hovers above all the other ones, making it easier for him to indulge in his childhood passion and share it with his son. He wouldn’t admit it but they both know - Jace has teased him about it enough times for it to be crystal clear.

The rooftop is the perfect place to stargaze, the roughness of the concrete smoothened by the plants surrounding it, creating a quiet haven of peace that is too rare in the frenzy of New York. When Alec lacks the inspiration for one of his drawings, he likes to come there and watch the city spread beneath his feet. Inspiration is at every corner, in the skyline drawing beneath Brooklyn Bridge, in the park where Max made his first steps at the next corner, in the Hudson river flowing through the city, imperturbable.

When he opens the door, Max rushing through immediately, he is too mesmerized by the starry night to notice Max isn’t running towards their usual stargazing stop.

“Max!” another voice yells cheerfully, full of youthful innocence.

Alec startles, blinking out of his stupor to watch his son run towards another boy with ebony disheveled hair and light brown skin, a wide grin on his lips. Even more surprising is Max’s matching beam, as he reaches the boy and tugs him in a tight, vigorous hug.

“Raf!” he yells back, even though there is no need for yelling at all.

Brows furrowed in surprise, Alec walks closer slowly, only to freeze completely when he realizes who the little boy is and, more accurately, who the man sitting on the ground, wrapped in the blanket the little boy just deserted to greet Max, is.

There might be need for yelling after all.

Alec doesn’t know much about the man apart from his last name being Bane - not that he checked on the mailboxes - and that he has the most breathtaking smile Alec has ever seen. He is always impeccably dressed, from his leather boots to the tip of his hair - dyed bright red tonight.

They run into each other almost every morning in the lobby, usually after Alec has dropped Max off at school and he is going back home to work and Bane is leaving the building - supposedly to go to his own work, whatever it is gorgeous people like him do for a living. They share a smile and a hello and sometimes, Bane throws in a flirtatious wink and a compliment. The one time he commented on Alec’s bed hair, mouth curved into a suggestive smirk, had Alec’s face flushed for at least the next hour.

Inspiration never fails him in those particular mornings.

He feels somewhat comforted by the fact that Bane seems just as shocked as he is by the boys’ enthusiasm.

“You two know each other?” he asks, and Alec had forgotten about his voice, smooth and clear like a mountain river but just silky enough to leave him wondering what lies beneath it.

“He’s my best friend!” Raf replies.

Max nods frantically, grabbing Alec’s hand to drag him forward. “Dad! This is Raf!” he exclaims, eyes shining with pure and unabashed glee and Alec’s heart flutters in his chest. “My best friend that lives on the fire escape!”

Alec frowns, but it is quickly soothed by Raf giggling. “I don’t live  _ on _ the fire escape,” he corrects, giggling some more.

Oh. That makes sense.

Alec has noticed Max had started to spend more and more time on the fire escape and the few times he went to check on him and make sure he wasn’t doing anything reckless, he caught him with his neck twisted in an uncomfortable position, talking and laughing, and he figured it was another kid. He just didn’t know  _ whose _ kid.

“Are you here to watch the stars, too?” Max asks eagerly, bouncing a little on his heels and Alec knows it must require all of his self-restraint not to leap up and down.

Raf nods back with just as much ardor. “My Dad said I could stay up to watch the meteor shower!”

“Mine too!” Max exclaims. He seems to realize suddenly that Raf isn’t alone because he turns towards their neighbor. “Hi Mr. Bane! I’m Max Lightwood, and this is my dad,” he says, tugging on Alec’s hand to emphasize his words, as if there is any doubt who he is talking about.

“Hi Max,” Hot Neighbor says with a soft smile. His lips curl at the corner as he glances up at Alec. “Hi neighbor. I don’t think we’ve been formally introduced. I’m Magnus, Rafael’s dad. It’s lovely to meet you both.”

Alec blinks out of his stupor to shake the outstretched hand. “I’m same.” 

Max giggles at his side, slamming a hand over his mouth in a poor attempt at hiding it. 

Alec flushes, clearing his throat. “I mean, it’s lovely to meet you too. I-I’m Alec.”

“My Dad knows everything about the stars,” Max tells Raf excitedly. “He even has that thing to see them better like a big camera zoom, except it doesn’t take pictures.”

“It’s called a telescope, Monkey,” Alec chuckles, shuffling his son’s hair, ignoring his grunt of protest.

He slides the bag off his back and onto the ground gently, carefully plucking out the telescope. He settles it on the middle of the rooftop, adjusting the tripod so it is low enough for both Max and Rafael. He unlocks the axis and finds a good location, where Venus shines brightly among the stars, locking it again.

When he turns back towards the boys, Rafael’s eyes are wide, filled with undisguised interest.

Alec gives him a soft, reassuring smile. “Wanna try?” he asks gently, pointing at the telescope.

Rafael nods eagerly, turning towards his father for permission, dark blue eyes wide and pleading. The smile Magnus sends him back is pure tenderness, and it makes something warm squirm in Alec’s stomach.

“Go ahead, darling,” he says and Rafael all but runs to Alec, Max on his heels.

Alec checks the lense one last time and steps aside, gesturing for Rafael to take his place. He hesitates for a moment but eventually Rafael pushes on his tiptoes to fit his eye against the lense, nose crunching up rather adorably.

“Wow,” he gasps under his breath.

“The big one in the middle is Venus,” he tells him.

“Venus is the second brightest thing in the sky after the Moon,” Max recites dutifully, eager to share his knowledge with his fire escape best friend. “It’s also called the morning star!”

Alec can’t help the lopsided grin that tugs at his mouth, pride filling his whole body until he is positively beaming with it.

“Dad! Dad!” Max exclaims. “Can I show him the Moon? Can I? Can I?”

Magnus chuckles from his spot on the ground and Alec turns to him with a smile, shrugging in answer.

“Yeah, but you know the rules,” he says, focusing back on his son.

Max nods, brows furrowing in a grave expression that shows how serious he is about it. “I’ll be careful,” he promises.

When Alec doesn’t step away, Max rolls his eyes dramatically and grabs his hand, pushing him towards Magnus unceremoniously.

“I’ve got this, Dad!” he exclaims and yeah, Alec definitely needs to have a talk with Jace about teaching sass to his five-year-old son. “You can prepare the snacks and talk with Mr. Bane so I can go play with Rafael for real and you can’t say you don’t know his parents.”

Alec opens his mouth to respond but nothing comes out, his eyes widening at his son’s demanding tone. Magnus snorts and Alec turns to him to throw him a look of absolute betrayal and disbelief, but the sight of his neighbor snickering behind his hand much like his own son did earlier is enough to make him chuckle too and roll his eyes at Max’ antics.

“I’ll share my blanket with you if you share whatever smells so good in your backpack with me, Mr. Bed Hair,” Magnus offers with a wink.

Alec forces himself not to blush at the ridiculous nickname. His hair isn’t  _ that _ bad.

He doesn’t reply immediately, mesmerized by the way the moonlight cast upon his neighbor’s face, glimmering against the glitter in his hair and the pink eyeshadows on his lids.

“Muffins,” he manages to blurt out eventually, grabbing his bag to pluck the plastic tub out. “Max and I made some before we left. They’re still warm.”

Magnus smiles at him, lifting an eyebrow as he raises an arm to show Alec the empty space next to him and Alec moves forward before his brain can conjure a reason why he shouldn’t, like the fact that he isn’t cold at all. He sits down awkwardly, wrapping the blanket around him.

“Thank you,” he murmurs.

“Thank  _ you _ ,” Magnus retorts, stealing a muffin off the tub and biting on it eagerly, a mischievous spark flickering in his gaze.

Alec chuckles, and tension seeps out of his shoulders at once, although it lingers in the rest of his body, in every inch of his right side that is brushing against Magnus and his infectious warmth under the blanket.

For a while, silence envelops them with the same comfort as the blanket as they watch their sons gazing at the stars through the telescope in awe, Max sharing with his friend everything he knows about the celestials bodies above them, Raf listening intently, gaze drifting between Max and the telescope, captivated.

“So,” Alec mutters, “our kids are friends?”

Magnus laughs, the sound light and clear and his eyes glimmer as he sets them on Alec. “Raf has been blabbering about a Max non-stop for months, I thought he was an imaginary friend.”

Alec can’t help but laugh with him. “I was wondering why Max was spending so much time on the fire escape, I thought he was so bored of spending time with his old dad he was  _ literally _ trying to escape.”

“He does seem to have a flair for drama,” Magnus points out with a smirk, “and I know what I’m talking about, I’m kind of an expert.”

“It’s my brother’s fault,” Alec sighs, but the fondness in his tone belies his apparent irritation. “And it’s worse with Izzy. She spends an hour with him and suddenly he wants to take salsa classes, buy a puppy and save the world all in one afternoon.”

“Izzy?” Magnus echoes. “Is that Mrs. Bed Hair?”

Alec tells himself the genuine interest he can hear in his voice and read in his eyes is just the product of his wishful imagination

“No,” he says, shaking his head with probably too much eagerness. “Isabelle is my sister. There’s no Mrs. I’m a single dad. Max is adopted.”

He says it all in a breath, cringing inwardly at his own lack of eloquence. This, right there, is exactly the reason why he is a  _ single _ dad.

“Oh,” Magnus says, and the word hangs in the air between them, heavy with a meaning Alec forces himself to analyze until it just doesn’t make sense anymore.

For a moment, Alec just stares at the moonlight reflecting in the deep brown of Magnus’ eyes, wondering how it is possible for them to shine brighter than the stars on the clearest night of the year.

“What about you?” he asks, before he can say something stupid like _ ‘fuck, you’re really pretty, we should get married’ _ because he doesn’t swear in front of children. “Where’s Rafael’s mother?”

Magnus shrugs. “It’s just Raf and I.”

“Good,” Alec blurts out before he can stop himself. His eyes broaden, cheeks flushing bright red as Magnus’ lips pull into yet another smirk. “I mean, not good. Or is it? Oh God, you don’t have to answer that, that’s none of my business. I just meant- I just…Shit, why am I still talking?”

Max and Rafael gasp in unison, turning away from the stars to gape at him, eyes blown in shock.

“Dad!” Max exclaims, clearly offended - Alec can relate, although he is mostly offended at the word vomit he just subjected his neighbor to. “Swear jar!”

Alec growls, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I’ll put a dollar in when we get home,” he sighs, resisting the urge to facepalm. “Sorry.”

But Max and Rafael have already turned away, distracted by a bright red light in the sky that they attribute to Superman, chatting over each other excitedly because  _ their friends at school are never going to believe them _ . Alec doesn’t have the heart to tell them it’s a plane.

“Sorry,” Alec repeats lower for Magnus’ ears only.

Magnus levels him with an amused glance, gently bumping their shoulders together. “Don’t apologize,” he says softly, his fingers dancing in the air between them in a dismissive flourish, the rings on his hand glimmering. “You’re exquisite when you blush.”

Alec opens his mouth to answer but his brain promptly stops working, and he shuts it before he can start blabbering again.

Magnus’ smirk widens. “So, do you really know  _ everything _ about the stars?” he asks, and there is genuine interest beneath the gentle teasing. “Are you an astronomer or something?”

Alec chuckles, shaking his head. “No, I’m an architect,” he replies. “I’ve just always loved the stars, ever since I was little.”

“Which you’re clearly not anymore,” Magnus says, eyes roaming over him unabashedly, and this time, Alec isn’t sure he imagined the appreciative flicker he catches in them. “So you passed it on to your son.”

Alec darts a look at Max, who is chatting excitedly to Rafael with broad gestures, and a tender smile paints his lips. “He’s even more fascinated by all this than I was at his age,” he admits, before focusing back on Magnus. “What do you do?”

“I work at the Met,” Magnus replies with a smile.

Alec wonders how the Met can afford to have him work for them when he must outshine all the masterpieces in the museum but he keeps his mouth shut, humming instead.

His mind really needs to stop doing this. Magnus is just his neighbor. His gorgeous, friendly, kind, fascinating neighbor with a smile to die for and a love for his son that transpires every time his eyes just brush over the little boy but still.

“Max would love that,” he says, pointing at his son with his chin. “My sister-in-law is an artist and he loves it when she takes him with her for an exhibition. What do you do exactly?”

“I’m a curator,” Magnus says, and his lips curve upwards. “I’m a connoisseur of fine art and beautiful things.”

He winks then and Alec blushes. Clearly, his neighbor doesn’t want his brain to function properly.

He smiles nonetheless. Magnus smiles back, and the stars shine all the more brightly for it.

“Dad!” Max exclaims and he runs to him and unceremoniously drops in his lap, Rafael following to do the same with his own father. “It’s starting!”

Oh. The stars  _ actually _ shone brighter. It wasn’t all Magnus’ smile. Alec could have been fooled.

Stripes of light streak through the radiant midnight velvet, twirling around a crescent moon and ending their course in the darkness. Alec wraps his arms around Max, pressing a kiss in his hair.

“Dad,” Max says, tugging on the sleeve of his sweater, “tell us about the shooting stars!”

So Alec does. He tells them about those tiny bits of rock that somehow fascinated him from an early age, their incandescence reminding him that he was never alone, no matter the obstacles thrown his way. He tells them about the two known kind of meteors and although Max already knows all of this, he nods in agreement eagerly, and Alec can see from the corner of his eyes that Magnus and Rafael are listening intently, their eyes drifting from the sky every now and then to look at him instead.

Sometimes, they ask a question, and when Max knows the answer, he responds before Alec can even think of doing so, but he lets him with a proud smile, correcting him if necessary.

When the meteor shower disseminates in flashes of light across the blackness, Alec moves on to the constellations, and Rafael bashfully chimes in when he knows something, Max beaming with pride on Alec’s lap when it is clearly something he taught him himself.

He doesn’t know how long they stay there, talking about the stars hovering above their heads, but Max and Rafael are about to fall asleep on their lap, heads heavy with slumber, when Magnus smiles at him, resting a hand on his forearm.

“We should go,” he says, stifling a yawn behind his hand.

“Dad,” Max mumbles in a tired voice.

“Yes, Monkey?” Alec replies, pressing a kiss to his forehead as he rises to his feet, cradling him into his arm.

“Mr. Magnus works at the museum,” Max informs him solemnly, hooking his arms around his neck as Alec carefully tucks their stuff back in the backpack. “Do you think we could visit him so he can teach us about the paintings like you did about the stars?”

Alec shares a quick glance with Magnus, who is folding the blanket, Rafael rubbing at his eyes sleepily next to him, before darting his eyes back to his son. “We wouldn’t want to bother Magnus at his work place, Max,” he says, and he is about to argue further but Magnus doesn’t let him.

“I don’t mind,” he says, sending a playful wink at Max, who answers with a tired smile. “And I don’t work on the weekends so I’d be happy to give you the grand tour on a Saturday.” His gaze is back on Alec then. “Maybe you two could come over afterwards so Max and Raf can have a play date?”

Alec doesn’t give his son the time to plead. “I think we’d both love that,” he says, smiling.

Magnus walks closer, the blanket draped over his arm, his other hand tucked in Rafael’s. “And maybe while they play, you and I can plan another kind of date,” he adds, something almost bashful flashing in his eyes.

Alec bites on his bottom lip to stop himself from grinning too obviously. “If you’re not afraid of your son becoming a professional drama queen, I’m sure Jace wouldn’t mind looking after Rafael as well as Max.”

Magnus’ eyes shine with glee, and there is nothing Alec can do then to prevent the wide grin pulling at his lips.

“Darling, I’m his father,” he quips playfully. “I’m pretty sure he will be the one to teach your brother a thing or two.”

Alec chuckles, pushing the door leading back to the staircase open and gesturing for him to go in, readjusting Max in his arms. “After reflection, I’m not sure that’s such a good idea,” he hums, but he can already feel a giddy excitement flutter in his stomach.

They get down the stairs in silence, stopping in front of Magnus and Rafael’s apartment.

“I’ll see you in the lobby on Monday. Don’t be a stranger,” Magnus says, with a teasing wink.

“I won’t,” Alec pledges. “My arms are a bit full right now but maybe then you could give me your number so we can plan that date? For Raf and Max.”

“Of course,” Magnus says. “For Raf and Max.”

Raf snorts in disbelief. “Dad, are you and Max’s dad gonna flirt all night long? I want to go to bed.”

Alec clears his throat, his cheeks flushing a little. “Y-Yeah, we should go. Good night.”

Magnus smiles, leaning in to press the softest kiss at the corner of his mouth. “Good night, Alexander,” he murmurs as he draws back, his breath crashing against his lips. Alec’s tongue darts out to wet his lips. “Good night, Max,” he adds louder, gently stroking the back of his head, tugged into Alec’s neck.

He turns around, sliding the key in the front door, and Alec feels his mouth tickle with the reminiscences of his breath against it.

“Good night, Mr. Magnus,” Max mumbles sleepily. “Good night, Raf. Sorry my dad is being weird and gross with your dad.”

“It’s okay,” Raf replies, nodding thoughtfully. “My dad is being weird and gross too. But if they marry each other, we can be brothers.”

Max’s head shoots out of Alec’s neck in a second, wide blue eyes staring up at him in shock. “Is that true?”

Alec stammers for a moment, and he glances at Magnus, who is smirking again, an amused but fond spark shimmering in the gold of his eyes.

“Let me buy him dinner first,” he says diplomatically.

“Okay,” Max says, settling back against his neck.

“Good night, Mr. Lightwood. Good night, Max,” Raf says as he walks inside.

Alec smiles at him, and then at Magnus.

Magnus moves forward, pressing another kiss against his cheek and turning around before Alec can say a word. “Bye,” he says in a soft, purring voice that sounds more like a beginning than an end, and he disappears inside, closing the door after him.

Alec stares at the door, blinking, knowing his cheeks are flushed and his lips parted - in shock or something else, he isn’t sure.

“Dad,” Max drawls against his neck. “Mr. Magnus is gone. We can go now.”

Alec shakes his head. “Yeah, Monkey,” he murmurs, walking to the staircase.

When Max is safely tucked in bed, fast asleep, Alec plants a kiss on his forehead and walks to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water. Then, he allows his mind to rush back to Magnus, the memory of his lips ghosting against his skin sending shivers down his spine, and he smiles to the bright specks glimmering by the windows, somehow blurred in the most fantastic way by the fluttering in his stomach that refuses to stop.

There aren’t many things that Alec loves as much as he loves the stars, but standing in the darkness of his kitchen, watching the endless void of light dissolve into a breathtaking path, he thinks that maybe this is about to change.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> I made Alec so extra I don't even know what happened but let's face it: who wouldn't be extra when faced with the beautiful glory of Magnus Babe?
> 
> I'm on tumblr [@lecrit](http://lecrit.tumblr.com/) and on twitter [@_L_ecrit](https://twitter.com/_L_ecrit).
> 
> All the love,  
> Lu.  
> ❤


End file.
